Wilder Claims Joshua Fight “Will Happen”

Deontay Wilder continues to put the pressure on Anthony Joshua, as he told reporters this week that the fight “will happen.”

Wilder’s manager Shelley Finkel broke down Wilder’s offer to Joshua in an interview with Boxing Scene, which includes $50 million against 50 percent of the revenue at a site of Wilder’s choosing between September and December.

“If Joshua and his team are smart enough, they’ll take this fight and take it soon,” said Wilder. “We’re not going to be waiting. The offer’s on the table: $50 million and he gets 50-50 split upward, so he can make even more money than that.

“That’s going to be the highest up-front money that any heavyweight fighter has ever gotten in their career. That’s a lot of money to turn down and I know he’s not Dave Chappelle, so it’s going to happen.”

Wilder is confident that this fight will happen, and it will happen outside the United Kingdom, telling reporters that “it’s just a matter of time. With the magnitude of this fight, it takes time. I think a lot of negotiations and different things are going on. That’s part of the buildup to it.

“When the fight happens, it’s going to be an epic one. At the end of that fight, there will be one champion, one face, one name and his name is Deontay Wilder.”